Revolutionary
by msrowley
Summary: As Eponine decides to withdraw from prostitution so Marius would take her seriously, she realizes her faults in thinking that her world revolved around him. Will she really be able to escape her image as a whore, or will someone make her see otherwise?
1. Save Tomorrow For Tomorrow

_**Hey guys! So, this is my first story for Les Miserables, and I'm an Eponine/Enjolras shipper, so this story is going to be an E/E story. I know that E/E is not the most common couple here on fanfiction, but like it or not, they have surprisingly good potential. And if you don't like the couple I'm rooting for, close this now, because most people who do not ship E/E and read an E/E story don't usually have very nice things to say about those stories.**_

_**For the casting of this story, I'm fine with either David Thaxton or Ramin Karimloo as Enjolras, but I'll cast Ramin anyway, since I noticed he has good reception with female audiences (although David looks right for the role of Enjolras, since he looks a lot like Victor Hugo's Enjolras), and for Eponine...Samantha Barks, Lucie Jones, Diane Pilkington, and Rosalind James are all there to choose from. Of course, if you want a different set of models for those roles, that is completely up to you.**_

_**Anyway, the plotline of this story is that Eponine, like it or not, is a prostitute. Not like those "lovely ladies" in the musical, but a little more serious. She only does what she does to make ends meet, thus showing the endless struggle the Les Miz characters all face. Remember, prostitutes are people too; it's not because they want to but because they have to, and that's what Eponine's first phase in this story is about. Soon, she realizes that she no longer wants to continue whoring herself, because she understands that if she does, no one will ever take her seriously, not even Azelma or Marius or anyone else she cares about.**_

_**As for whatever happens next, you'll have to read to find out.**_

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><p>Eponine walked the streets of Paris in the middle of the night, slightly tipsy from the doses of alcohol she accepted from a man who had asked for her services. She had no idea what time it might have been, but she'd guess it was an hour or two before midnight, and for someone who lived in Paris during that time, it was not safe.<p>

She staggered on the rocky pavement, her bare feet struggling to keep her standing straight. She had spent some of her nights in a condition similar to this, but most nights were relatively relaxed, and spent talking and roaming around with her sister, Azelma. Like her older sister, Azelma also would put herself on the market, but only when very necessary. Other times, both of them would simply stay away from it, and just save themselves from the drunken men. There were a lot of times when they wished they didn't have to continue doing this, but after a while, they realized that they needed to.

It was the time of night when pubs were forced to close because they were bombarded with uncontrollable men who were under the influence of alcohol, and by that time, those men were out on the streets, looking for an enjoyable night.

Eponine groaned inwardly as she noticed them, knowing that they would try to go for her. She tried to walk a little faster, but found it rather difficult to do so, since she was barely even walking. It was only a matter of time before they noticed her and started walking towards her.

Two men were advancing towards her. She reacted by trying to get away from them, but they only caught up with her. Eponine had no choice but to make a run for it, and when she did, they only ran after her. She turned at one corner and hid behind a wall. From where she stood, she listened intently for clues on whether the coast was clear or not. A few moments of silence passed and she thought that they had left for good.

She leaned in checked to see if the two men were gone. There was no sign of them.

Reluctantly, she came out of her hiding spot and walked towards the direction of her home. As she walked there, however, she was quite shocked when she felt a strong grip hold her back.

It happened in the blink of an eye. Someone held her back and put their hand over her mouth before she could scream.

"Hello there little missy," the voice greeted devilishly, and it sent unpleasant shivers down Eponine's spine. "Now just where do you think you're going?"

_Away from you_, she thought, before biting the hand that was covering her mouth. Her attacker yelled in pain and drew his hand away from her mouth instantly, giving her enough time to make a run for it. Unfortunately, she was only able to run a few feet away from him because another of the two men had blocked her way. Almost immediately did she back away, but was stopped when she felt another one behind her. She turned around and felt her heart drop to her ankles. Both of them were there, and she had no chance against them, not in the state that she was in.

She looked around them helplessly as they drew closer to her. When one of them caught her, she yelped. "Get off of me!" she cried, and pushed away as hard as she could. "Leave me alone!"

And yet, it only seemed to motivate him. "Feisty one, eh?" he said, with a malicious smile. The other gave a sickening laugh as well.

And at the moment when she seemed most helpless, she realized all she could do was scream, like she did when she had to stop her father's gang from robbing Cosette's home. "AAAAAAHHHHH!"

Her scream was cut off when one of them put their hand on her mouth again, and this time it was accompanied by a sharp, cold knife pointed at her throat. "You say one more word, and it'll be the last one," he whispered. Eponine whimpered in fear. "Gilles, take everything she's got on her," he said to the other man, and Gilles' hands searched Eponine's pockets and got the few francs that she had earned that night. The girl groaned in protest, but was stopped when the knife was pressed more firmly against her throat.

There was nothing more that she could do. These men were rough and strong, and she was tired, drunk, and sleepy. She thought that she would die right then and there when she heard a familiar voice.

"I believe she asked you to leave her alone," the voice said. Eponine and the two attackers turned. It was Marius' friend, Enjolras, the student who lead the revolution.

"Mind your own business. We've got some unfinished work with this hussy over here," came the cold reply of the man who had his knife pressed against Eponine's throat.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," Enjolras replied firmly, taking a few steps closer to them. "Let her go _now_."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," said the attacker, mocking Enjolras' earlier statement and trying to imitate his tone. He and Gilles laughed harshly.

Enjolras' expression remained cold and stern. "I'm going to ask you again to let her go, and if you will not do as I say-"

"Oh, and what's going to happen if we don't do as you say?" Gilles retorted as he and his partner, Arnaud, laughed again.

"You're going to have to face every one of us," said a voice from behind Enjolras. Neither Eponine nor the attackers knew who said it, since it there was a whole group of young men behind him. It was Courfeyrac, Joly, Grantaire, Combeferre and a few other student revolutionaries.

Arnaud's eyes hardened. "What're you lot going to do about it?"

"I don't think you'd want to know," Courfeyrac replied coldly as he, Enjolras and the rest of the group took a step forward.

A sound escaped Arnaud's lips that sounded like a yell, "You take one more step and I'll cut this girl's throat!" His hand was no longer covering Eponine's mouth and was firmly wrapped around her collarbone, supporting his grip on her.

Enjolras dared one more step towards them. He saw Arnaud's grip tighten on the girl, but he didn't cut her throat like he said he would. As his grip tightened, Eponine winced in pain. He might not have been cutting her throat yet, but the knife was starting to cut through her skin, and she felt the knife starting to move. "M'sieur, Enjolras...don't..." she started, but was cut off when she fell to the ground.

Someone had attacked Arnaud from behind, and from where everyone else was standing, it looked very much like an old man, no less than sixty years old. The old man had grabbed Arnaud by his shoulders, and once they were facing each other, he punched him in the face. Eponine and the students watched as Arnaud and the old man exchanged punches, but the sight of Gilles escaping got her attention. She was about to say something about that matter when Enjolras and the other students caught up with him and started punching him as well.

Eponine got up with what little energy she had left and walked slowly to the group of students. Before she got to them, Gilles was already knocked out. She ran to him, bent down and reached into his pockets and got the money that he stole from her. She put them in the pocket of her torn skirt and got up.

"Are you alright, Eponine?" she looked up and saw Enjolras and the other students looking at her with concern in their eyes. She knew all of them, and was good friends with every one of them, especially since she had been following Marius around, they were bound to notice her. She knew that they knew about her feelings for him. It seemed it was only Marius who was unaware of them. She looked around and Marius was not here. Eponine did not bother to think about where he might be, for she had a feeling she knew, and the thought of it would hurt her. She nodded and gave them a weak smile.

She felt a drop of warm liquid rolling down her neck, and when she put her hand over that area and saw her blood on her fingers.

"She's bleeding," murmured Enjolras. "Joly," he called.

"Yes?"

"We need to take her to the cafe, now. Part of her neck has been cut," and with that, just as she was about to lose her balance once more, Enjolras swiftly carried Eponine. He walked towards the old man; Arnaud had now been knocked out as well. "Thank you, Monsieur."

The man nodded at Enjolras and the students. His eyes went to Eponine, who was now half asleep, and half awake. "Tell her to be more careful," he said to them.

Eponine opened her eyes a little and realized that the old man was Cosette's father, the father of the girl Marius loved.

"Yes, monsieur. Thank you again," replied Enjolras. "Good night."

And they left the alleyway. The Cafe Musain was closed when they got there, so they took Eponine to Joly's flat so he could treat her wound.

Once they got to Joly's flat, Joly cleared the dining table-which was the one thing in his flat that he practiced his medicinal skills on; whether it was because he had to treat someone sick, or it was for his medical schooling. Once he had put everything away, he let Enjolras set Eponine down on it.

The others had gathered around the table, Enjolras standing beside Joly, while Courfeyrac, Combeferre were on the other side of the table. Grantaire was a few feet away, lying down on Joly's couch, quite hung over from his last bottle of ale.

"This won't take very long," Joly told Eponine, who woke up when she felt herself lying on the dining table.

"Wh-Where's...Marius?" she asked, still half asleep. Joly looked at Enjolras, not knowing what to say. The Courfeyrac and Combeferre had also looked to the young man who lead the revolution.

The leader of the group noticed this, and said, "He's not here."

Eponine opened her eyes and looked at the group of young men looking at her. Indeed, Marius was not there. She wasn't surprised. She didn't want to think of where he might be, more importantly, of who he might be with, because she was afraid that she already knew, and it broke her heart. She stared at the ceiling miserably, occasionally wincing as Joly used a disinfectant to clean her wound. It stung. But not as much as the fact that Marius was not there, that he was not with her, and that he did not love her.

Enjolras just stared at Eponine sadly, wondering why Marius was so blind not to notice how she felt about him, how he had never even bothered to turn his head and look at the poor girl who was hopelessly in love with him. At the same time, he was astounded at the thought that she wasted so much time on a man who barely even knew she existed; there were so many other smarter, more handsome men in Paris, and why Eponine had fallen for this one, he did not know.

After Joly had stuck a bandage on her wound, he said, "Alright. It's done." He said, putting the set of bandages and his bottle of disinfectant back inside his medical kit.

The girl turned to look at him and gave him a small smile, a smile which Joly returned. She felt the bandage on her neck gingerly, sat up slowly and pushed herself off of the dining table. She almost lost her balance when she landed on the floor. She turned to the boys and gave them a thankful smile. "Thank you."

They smiled back at her and nodded in an acknowledging manner.

"I should really get going now," she told them. "Goodnight."

"Eponine," Joly called. She turned when she heard her name. "Try not to get attacked again."

She smiled at him. "I'll try," she teased, shrugging innocently. The boys laughed a little at that. Grantaire was asleep on Joly's couch, his mouth slightly open and a trail of saliva escaping his mouth. If Eponine was not so exhausted, she would have laughed. Enjolras, however, wore an expression that was quite serious yet unreadable. Eponine noticed this and her stare slightly lingered on him. "Goodnight."

Upon exiting the building, Eponine looked up at the night sky. The stars were shining brightly, but the moon was not with them tonight. She folded her arms so that she could warm herself and sighed. Of all the things in Paris, it was the night sky that was always beautiful. The only time it would change was at dawn when the sun would rise, but when night came again, it was still beautiful. It was the only thing in Paris that remained beautiful and constant, not like people. People change and grow, sometimes for better, but Eponine mostly experienced them changing into something worse, and she hated it when they did.

Her train of thought was interrupted when he heard the door open and close behind her. She turned around and saw Enjolras. "I thought that you would need someone to walk you home."

She smiled at him. There weren't a lot of people in Paris who were as kind as the revolutionaries. "That's very kind of you, but I'll be fine."

"I insist," he said. "After tonight, you need to be more careful."

He was right. So Eponine agreed and let him walk her home. Side by side, they walked the streets of Paris in silence, until Eponine broke the silence. "Paris is beautiful at night," she said.

Enjolras looked at her, then at the sky where she was looking, and agreed. "Yes it is."

A short silence followed before she spoke up again. "So, how did you know?" she asked and he looked at her. "That I was being attacked?"

"We just finished a meeting at the Cafe Musain, when we hear you screaming, and we followed the screaming and we found you with those two men," he said.

She nodded in understanding. "If you and your friends hadn't come and found me, I'd probably have been harassed, or beaten, maybe even killed."

"Well, we're lucky to have found you."

Eponine dared to ask him something she's been wanting to ask him for a while. "What made you decide that you had to fight for your country?"

Enjolras thought for a moment. "My instincts. I knew that my country, my Patria needed me to save her, and so I put up the cause."

Eponine was more reluctant when she asked the next question. "Are you afraid of dying at the barricade?"

Again, he thought for a moment. "Yes," he said. She looked at him. There was something gentle about him, and his warm brown eyes always told of everything he felt. "But what's going to unfold will unfold, and dead or alive, I will make sure that my Patria is free."

She smiled. "Spoken like a true patriot," she said, and he smiled back at her. _He should really smile more often_, she thought. _He's always so serious and reserved_.

A few more moments of silence passed as they walked. Eponine looked around and she saw a young man and a young woman sitting together on a bench. They were canoodling and very romantic with each other. Eponine's face registered sadness as this only reminded her of Marius, and how he loves Cosette...and not her. How she gave him her address and showed him the way to her house, and how he even introduced her as a friend the night she drove her father's gang away from the house. Perhaps that's all she will ever be to him, just a friend and nothing more. Tears began to sting her eyes at the thought.

"Eponine," she was snapped out of her thoughts when Enjolras said her name. She looked at him. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head. "Nothing," she lied.

In truth, Enjolras knew what she was upset about, and he took this as a hint that she didn't want to talk about it, so he remained silent.

They finally got to where she lived. "I should go in, my parents will wonder where I've been," she said, turning to look at him. "Thank you for walking me home."

"Not a problem," he replied. She turned and walked towards her home, when she heard him say her name. "And Eponine," he called. She turned to him again, but he walked towards her and said in a soft voice so that only she could hear. "Don't waste your time on him, there are so many other young men in Paris who would truly love you," and he gave her a single nod and turned on his heel to walk away, leaving her quite surprised.

She couldn't quite believe he had just said that. He and his friends all know how she felt about Marius, but none of them had really told her to find another man, let alone tell her that there were 'other men in Paris who would truly love' her. Eponine stood there for a few moments, still quite dumbfounded before she went inside her parent's house.

Upon entering the house, she saw Azelma, who was fixing the chairs. Azelma looked up. "Eponine! Where have you been?"

"Long story," she replied to her sister. "Where are maman and papa?"

"They're out doing business," her sister said. "'Ponine, what happened? You don't look so good."

She shook her head, not quite knowing where to start. She sat down on one of the chairs, and invited her sister to sit with her and she told Azelma everything, starting from when she was walking home, then the attack, the students coming to save her, how Cosette's father had fought with Arnaud, how the students brought her to Joly's house where she was bandaged and how Enjolras had walked her home.

Azelma sighed in wonder when her sister finished telling her the story. "Wow, that's amazing. They're very kind to have done that," she told her. "And they're the friends of M'sieur Marius, aren't they?"

Eponine nodded.

"Wow," she repeated. "They are so kind, especially M'sieur Enjolras."

Again, Eponine nodded. "Azelma...maybe we should stop...with our business..."

"What's making you say that?"

"Well, if we continue this business, we could very possibly get sick..."

Azelma thought for a moment, and then nodded. "That's a valid reason. But there's something else, isn't there?"

Eponine knew she couldn't hide that other reason. She'd been thinking of withdrawing from the prostitution business for a few months now, and it wasn't just because she could get infected by the pox. "What if...what if I continue this business? What will become of me? What will become of us? We'll just be spending the rest of our lives selling ourselves and not ever settling down."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that if we want to have a life, a real life, we have to withdraw ourselves from this business...if we don't, no one will take us seriously."

There was a pause as Azelma was trying to think about this matter. "This is about Monsieur Marius, isn't it?" she asked.

Eponine did not nod or shake her head. "I just...thought that if I continue this business, he won't take me seriously. No one will."

"I've been thinking about this too, 'Ponine, and I think you're absolutely right."

The elder sister raised her eyebrows at her younger sister. "Really?"

"Yes, I mean, what woman wouldn't want to settle down and be taken seriously and have a real life?" Azelma said, smiling.

"Yes!" Eponine said, beaming brightly at her sister before hugging her. "You're the only person in this household who really understands me, 'Zelma."

"You should get some sleep, 'Ponine, you're exhausted," Azelma told her and they both lay down on their usual sleeping places on the floor, in front of the cold fireplace which was full of black, burnt coal. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, 'Zelma."

Eponine was exhausted, and a million thoughts were racing through her mind. Still, she pushed them aside for the moment, and let herself drift off to sleep. All those problems, thoughts and petty feelings could wait until she woke in the morning.

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><p><em><strong>So, what do you think? It's only the first chapter, so there's more to come! Please tell me what you think!<strong>_


	2. My Junk Is You

_**So here is my second chapter. Pretty quick, since I started writing this chapter the day after I submitted the first one. Anyway, on with the story.**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Les Miserables.**

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><p>Eponine woke up to a fine summer day. The sunlight crept into the windows, and soon she could see the brightness from underneath her eyelids. Her eyes fluttered open, and she squinted slightly when the sudden exposure to light stung her eyes. Looking around, she noticed that Azelma and her parents were still sleeping. Her father and mother occupied the shabby bed that was in the far corner; both of them snoring quite loudly, and her sister had been on the floor sleeping next to her, as always. She couldn't imagine how she had managed to wake so early after sleeping so late last night.<p>

She got up from the floor and stretched a little. After sleeping on floors for nearly her entire life, she had grown accustomed to the back and neck pains, so accustomed, that she almost didn't notice that they hurt most of the time.

Suddenly, she remembered the events of last night, the memories of which were very suddenly shoved into her thoughts. Arnaud and Gilles assaulting her, Enjolras and his friends coming to the rescue, the old man who had beat up Arnaud who she recognized as Cosette's father, and everything else. She raised her hand to the wound on her neck that Joly had healed. She reminded herself that all those happened last night, that today was a new day, and it would be different, that she was officially going to stop selling herself from this day forward. Still having a slight headache from her alcohol intake the previous night, she simply ignored it and wen outside, careful not to wake her family.

Upon exiting their house, she looked around and found her fellow Parisians doing their usual businesses; whether they were out on their morning walk, or kids playing around and chasing each other, or working hard this early in the day.

She started walking around the neighborhood, looking for people that she could possibly ask alms from, or people she knew and could talk to, or basically the same things she did every morning. As she was walking, she heard a voice from behind her that made her jump.

"'Ponine!" came the whisper. She yelped in surprise and turned around. It was Montparnasse.

"'Parnasse!" she said. "What an _unpleasant_ surprise."

He simply ignored the last comment she gave and continued talking. "I was wondering where you were goin' to," he said, wagging his eyebrows at her in a malicious way, which made Eponine cringe. The last time they encountered each other, he nearly raped her. Luckily, she got away after kicking him square in the groin. Then, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her close to him and whispered in her ear, "I missed you, 'Ponine. 'Aven't seen you in a while."

"Well, I didn't," she replied coldly, yanking her wrist away from his grip. "I told you to stay away from me, 'Parn-_ass_."

He gave her a pouting lip. "Now, now 'Ponine," he said. "Be nice, after all, I've been lookin' for you everywhere, even had some of my boys lookin' for you."

Eponine's eyes widened, yet somehow, this revelation almost didn't surprise her. "That was _you_?" she whispered, every word she uttered spoke of sheer loathing. "_You_ sent Arnaud and Gilles to come looking for _me_? They nearly killed me!"

"Aww, well that's jus' too bad," he said in a mock-pitying manner. "You never can trust the 'elp with yer dirty work, can you?"

"You're horrible!" she told him, and then pointed to the bandage on her neck. "He nearly cut my throat!"

"No 'arm done," and then he grabbed her arms, pulled her closer to him and started whispering to her neck. "I'll jus' kiss it to make it feel better."

"Get off of me!" she cried.

"'S alright now, I promise to give you a few sous after we're done," he whispered, and it sent unpleasant shivers down her spine. He was horrible, and though he still thought of her as a whore, that was all about to change. She noticed that some Parisian workers started looking, but she didn't care. Struggling to escape Montparnasse's grip, a thought came to her, and she did what she always did to stop him and kicked him in the groin. The man jerked forward and groaned in pain, his grip loosened and Eponine took this opportunity to run.

She grinned as she fled. _Works every time, _she thought. She didn't care where she would end up running to. Montparnasse and everyone else she knew probably still thought of her as the dirty whore she knew herself to be, probably even Marius. She didn't care anymore. She just ran, almost as if she were trying to run from her former life and being, rather than just running from Montparnasse. She slowed down her running after a while and looked back. Montparnasse was no longer chasing her. The girl sighed and was about to stop running when she bumped into something, or someone, rather.

Both of them gave an "oh!" at the sudden impact. She turned her head and looked up.

"Eponine," the tall student greeted, with a rather surprised look on his face.

"Enjolras!" she exclaimed, quite breathless from the running. "I'm sorry, didn't see where I was going to."

"I can see that," Enjolras replied, holding her arms to steady her. "Are you alright? Who were you running from?"

She was still looking back to check if Montparnasse was really gone and realized that Enjolras had asked her something. She turned to looked at him. "Huh?" she asked stupidly, and still quite breathlessly. And then he remembered what he asked her. "Oh right! No, no, I'm alright, I'm just er-running a few errands for my parents," she turned a bit red for embarrassing herself like this. _Quite a nice way to start the day, eh? Bumping into someone and being completely off-focus? Well done_, she thought to herself sarcastically.

"I see," he said, examining her. She was breathing heavily and her hair was windblown. "Are you sure you're alright?"

She nodded reassuringly, finally recovering from her breathlessness. "I'm fine, I'm fine. I'm just...you know," she said, not quite certain what to say. And then she added, with a smile, to be a little friendlier, "You know me, always living the fast life!"

He smiled at her and nodded. He really was quite handsome, his dark hair was always fixed neatly, but somehow it always got a bit messy, his eyes were warm, brown and piercing, and his smile was just so warm and genuine, and it was such a waste that he didn't smile like that a lot. "Alright, I'll leave you to do...whatever it is that you have to do," he told her and let go of her arms, and, giving her a solemn nod, said, "I'll see you around, mademoiselle." And then he walked away.

Eponine turned to watch him leave and tilted her head, smiling a little. He really is quite the charmer, let alone the only person who's ever called her 'mademoiselle'! She couldn't even stop herself from blushing when he called her so. Still smiling, she turned and walked away.

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><p><em>It's like I'm your lover, or more like your ghost.<br>I spend the day wondering what you do, where you go._

-"My Junk" from _Spring Awakening_

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><p>A week later, Eponine was on her way to the Café Musain to check on their meeting. More importantly, she wanted to check if Marius was there.<p>

Upon entering the café, she noticed that she had walked in on Enjolras giving his friends a speech. The door made a sound when she closed it behind her, and the volunteers turned and saw her. Enjolras had glanced at her as well. "Hi," she said, giving a small smile, feeling a bit uncomfortable given the fact that they all looked at her. "I'm sorry, if I've interrupted...carry on."

They all turned to Enjolras to pay attention to what he was saying, and he turned his eyes from Eponine to the volunteers. Eponine took a seat in nearby, far enough to be identified as someone who wasn't a volunteer, but close enough to be able to hear what they were discussing, or rather, what Enjolras was discussing.

When she sat down, she looked around and frowned in slight disappointment. Marius was not there. However, she also noticed someone who was sitting with the volunteers, and appeared to have been listening intently to their leader. This person seemed quite small and young to be participating in a rebellion, and right now he was waving over to the girl. Eponine's jaw dropped.

It was Gavroche.

_What_? Eponine was surprised, because she hadn't seen her little brother in a while, and because he was joining the revolution; and at the same time not surprised, since it seemed like something very crazy, Gavroche-like thing to do. She shook her head, partly from disbelief and amazement. Gavroche noticed this and winked at her. She rolled her eyes and beckoned for him to go to her. He shook his head stubbornly. She beckoned again. And the little boy shook his head once more. She tilted her head and threw him an annoyed look. He stuck his tongue out at her. She scoffed, he hadn't changed one bit. Vexed, she stuck her tongue out at him as well, and they just started a very childish game wherein they would simply shake each other's heads while sticking out their tongues at each other. It wasn't long before Enjolras noticed this.

"...er...is there anything you'd like to share, Eponine?" he asked, after awkwardly trailing off from his speech when he noticed Gavroche and Eponine throwing looks at each other.

Eponine froze. She looked from Enjolras to the volunteers to Gavroche and back again. "Er...I...Well I-" she stammered. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! Say something! _She looked at Gavroche, who was still sticking his tongue out at her, shoving her moment of embarrassment in her face. Feeling the eyes of Enjolras, Gavroche and the volunteers on her, she finally said, "I just...need to have a word with Gavroche...outside."

Everyone else's gaze shifted from Gavroche, who now threw Eponine a look of annoyance. "Er...Very well," Enjolras continued, and he nodded to the two siblings as a gesture that they had his permission to go out.

Gavroche sighed, though in quite an annoyed way, and followed his older sister outside the Café. Once he was out, Eponine took his by the arm and pulled him aside.

"Just _what_ do you think you're doing in there?" she demanded.

"Oy!" he exclaimed, yanking his arm away from her tight grip. "I'm joinin' the revolution, alright? Why do you care, anyway?"

"Are you insane? You could get yourself _killed_!"

"But I want to be part of this! I ain't really doin' anything with my life and it's for a good cause!"

Eponine sighed and looked at her brother who was no taller than four feet. She kneeled down so she could level with him. "'Vroche, I just don't want you getting hurt. When you're out there...no one will save you...those National Guards will kill you once they see you, and I just don't want that to happen."

Gavroche looked at his sister. She was genuinely worried about him. He didn't say anything, but just wrapped his arms around her neck. Eponine was touched by this, and did not hesitate to hug him back. "I missed you, 'Vroche," she told him.

"Missed you too, sis," he replied. She couldn't help but smile at this. They pulled apart, and he asked her, "So, how are they, maman and papa? Do they ever talk about me?"

Eponine shrugged. "Same as always...and...No, they don't."

Gavroche nodded. He was not surprised that his parents did not mention him anymore, and he didn't expect them to. "What about 'Zelma?"

"'Zelma's fine," she said, smiling at him kindly. She looked at her brother properly. For once in his life, he looked genuinely happy. Gavroche had always had a light, soft side to him that did not often show when he still lived with the Thernadiers. Now, it seems he's happier than Eponine's ever seen him; his cheeks were slightly fuller and pinker, not quite from eating, but from smiling and running around the streets. He was free, and Eponine was happy for him, that he was enjoying his own life, a life he wouldn't be able to have if he was still living with her, Azelma and their parents. She understood. He was happier, and even though it meant being away from him most of the time, she wanted what was best for him. "C'mon, let's go back inside."

They went back into the café and sat through the remainder of the meeting. Then when the meeting ended, the volunteers stayed for a chat and a drink. It was only a few minutes after the meeting that Marius had arrived-with Cosette.

When he got inside the Café, he greeted his friends sheepishly, and they all turned to look at him and the girl who he was arm in arm with. Eponine's eyes widened. She immediately felt a jolt of several different emotions hit her-shock, hurt, nervousness, discomfort, awkwardness-and she fidgeted in her seat uncomfortably.

Grantaire was the first to come up to Marius. "Marius Pontmercy!" he exclaimed, and Marius looked quite embarrassed by his drunken friend. "It's about time you got here. Care to introduce me to this lovely creature?" he teased, turning to Cosette.

"Cosette, this is my friend Grantaire, and Grantaire this is Cosette," said Marius.

Grantaire raised his eyebrows. "And Cosette is your...?"

"Grantaire," Marius warned as the other students went over to his direction to greet him and Cosette. They greeted the pair with teasing smiles to Marius, yet sweet smiles to Cosette, and Joly mentioned how he was delighted to have met the girl who's had Marius smitten for weeks, which made the couple blush.

Eponine took advantage of this moment to sneak out without getting noticed. She didn't want to have to face both of them in front of everyone else in the café.

Quietly, she walked towards the door as unnoticeable as she tried to be when Marius called her. "'Ponine! You've met Cosette, haven't you?"

She groaned inwardly and turned to face him and the others. "Yes, I have," she replied, trying to avoid everyone's gaze. "Er...I have to go."

And with that, she turned on her heel and left the café before any of them could say anything. Eponine ran off, not really sure where she was going. She knew she could not run from Marius and Cosette forever – especially since she holds a strong attraction to the former – but she would when she could.

* * *

><p><em><strong>This chapter is quite short, I know, but it was meant to be that way. Just because it's a chapter entry does not mean it has to be a long one. Anyway, as for the little quote I put in there, it's just a song from Spring Awakening that's been stuck in my head lately, and by chance I thought that it matched how Eponine feels about Marius (as of now). Don't worry, I'm trying to update as quick as I can!<strong>_


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